The prophetic events found in The Book of Daniel and in The Revelation of John are of great interest to students of scripture, and every Christian denomination has placed their own interpretations upon them. Many have been rather sound in their explanation, while still leaving room for uncertainty. This work does not represent the views of any particular religion, and the facts may be far different than commonly considered.

The prophetic biblical events found in The Book of Daniel and in The Revelation of John have been of great interest to many students of scripture. Concerning these two books, most every Christian denomination has, in one way or another, placed their own varying interpretations upon the prophecies found within them and their ensuing time lines.

As with many students of the Holy Writ, I have searched and re-searched scripture for the meaning of prophecies, especially those relating to the last day end time events. And like many others who have done the same, I have come up with many and varying interpretations, some of which have been rather sound in their explanation, yet leaving room for uncertainty. So how do answers to such queries arrive?

The Lord often requires us to put on our thinking caps and use the intelligence with which He has blessed us, and earn our bread by the “sweat of thy face,” so to speak, before He produces the fruit we seek. And, of course, along with this effort on our part, He expects us to continue in prayer and supplication for His grace in providing that fruit. So after a lot of study and research, and very much prayer, the “real” answers starting to appear; and I discovered they were there all the time.

We must keep in mind that as we delve into various dates, time lines, and events, there is often much disagreement. During olden times people did not have calendars like we have today, causing a lot of discrepancy in dating records, if such records were kept at all; and if not, then guess-work is often introduced to help establish various time frames. Where records were kept, there are often erroneous assumptions as to their meaning. Not only that, but different nations used dissimilar ways to figure the years of the reign of kings and events; along with that there is much debate concerning the new moons and additional months to even out the 365 and 1/4 day year, etc. Such facts, or lack of facts, obviously leaves room for doubt and argument as to the exactness of dates and events. And adding to this historical disorder, dispute is frequently based upon a historian’s perspective, biases, prejudices, or personal agenda. All of this potential chaos is still no excuse for us not to do the best we can at arriving at accurate historical data; which is this author’s intention.

How can we be sure of certain dates? Well, one thing we need to do is to be as objective as possible, and set all personal agendas aside; another thing is to be sure the years considered are within a reasonable historical time frame; and we also need to carefully match up historical events with biblical prophecy. Nevertheless, when it comes to predicting future events, “the proof is in the pudding” so to speak—the proof is in the fulfilling of the prophecy. In such cases, hindsight is usually more accurate then foresight.

It could have been very easy for God to give us exact dates for certain events, but He didn’t. Has the reader ever stopped to wonder why? Perhaps it’s because He wants us to figure things out for ourselves with the reasoning mind He has endowed us with. Besides, if we knew everything in His scheme of things, we wouldn’t need faith to trust in Him and His wisdom; we would use our natural, worldly instincts to procrastinate the day of our repentance. So He has warned us and has given us signs to look for as we search prophecy for answers. He wants us to be vigilant and watch for His coming, that we might be prepared at all times for His glorious coming.

All of this must be kept in mind as we pursue our discussion of such subjects as: the beasts of Daniel; his 70 weeks; the 1260, 1290 and 1335 days; time, times and a half time; and more. Since we will be discussing beasts in this study, let’s define what a beast is. Daniel 7:23 gives us the answer: “... The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth...” Therefore, a beast is defined as a “kingdom,” or an empire. BEAST = KINGDOM.

Although I have included the results of my own finding in the following presentation, a lot of the credit goes to one Elis Skolfield and his book, The False Prophet, along with the works of many others whom I’ve researched. However, during my probing into the subject I have also found conflict in dates, and other historical data, along with interpretation that I felt did not quite work.

I, therefore, strongly suggest that the reader not totally rely upon the work of others for answers to vital question in life, especially those questions which have answers that might impact their eternal salvation (not even this author’s work). Seek and rely upon the Holy Spirit first, not man, in all things.

Within this work I offer a few possible interpretations for the fulfillment of many biblical prophecies, such as events and time lines. In scriptural prophecy there are many types and shadows— one event being a similar type and foreshadowing a future event. Because of this there may be evidence of a prophecy being fulfilled in various ways. Another book of mine, The Whore and Beast of End Time Prophecy, is a case in point; there I present a different approach in identifying prophetic fulfillment relating to a few prophecies that are addressed within this study. However, the reader must keep in mind that even though there may seem to be differences in interpreting a particular prophecy, all things will come together in God’s on way. It’s just a matter of how all of the pieces of His great puzzle fit together.

Now if the reader finds similar thoughts and phrasing in this work as may be found in the works of others, please give those other authors the credit for such thoughts. My purpose is not to plagiarize but to present information—true facts if at all possible. I don’t need the credit, but I do want to share what I have discovered for myself and what I believe is important. So I claim no originality in what is contributed in this study, save a little editing and the arranging, organizing and formatting for the presentation.

Although this work does not necessarily represent the views of any particular religious persuasion, the facts expressed may be found to be far different than commonly considered; so the average student of Bible prophecy may find the following information to be a real mental and spiritual paradigm shift. Also, in this study, the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible will be the scriptural choice of reference.

The prophecies of Daniel and those of John the Revelator have probably been the most studied of all biblical prophecies; with those found in Revelation seeming to be a continuation of Daniel’s prophecies. One of the difficulties in understanding both Daniel and John is that the prophecies found in Daniel have been sealed until the “time of the end,” which helps hinder the understanding of those found in John’s Revelation.

Daniel 12:4: “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.”

Daniel 12:8-9: “And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.”

So even though there has been great speculation upon Daniel’s prophecies, the actual meaning of them was not to be understood until the “time of the end,” at that time “knowledge shall be increased” concerning those things.

However, John’s Revelation was not sealed, for John was told in Chapter 22 verse ten: “And he [the Angel] saith unto me [John], Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.” One of the reasons that John’s prophecies have been difficult for many to understand is because it is linked to Daniel’s prophecies which were sealed. So without an understanding of Daniel, there is difficulty understanding John.

So the question is, When is the “time of the end”? Hopefully, that question will be answered as we consider what follows.

Are the prophetic “days” mentioned in Daniel and Revelation actually 24-hour days, or do they represent some totally different duration of time? For many students of prophecy, this is not a difficult question. They understand the biblical concept that one day of our time is equal to one thousand years of the Lord’s time. We pick up on this from 2 Peter 3:8 where Peter said, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”

There are other verses in scripture that back up the day for a year concept. Within the Books of Numbers and Ezekiel we find insight needed to understand the day for a year principle.

Numbers 14:34: “After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.”

Ezekiel 4:5-6: “For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.”

Although some people may understand the day for a year principle, how many understand it when interpreting prophecy? With this concept we can now understand the prophecy of the 70 weeks, the 1290 days, the 42 months, and so forth.

The old Hebrew calendar fell under the Levitical code and was “lunar” based. Twelve of these Hebrew months equaled 354.14 days, or about eleven days short of the solar year. The Hebrews learned to add an extra month every two or three years, which month was called an “intercalary” month. In old rabbinical times this intercalary month was inserted seven times in nineteen years.

The Jews had a twelve-month calendar, and each month had 30 days; this made up a 360 day year. Logically, then, it is correct to use a 360-day Hebrew years to interpret Old Testament prophecies. But, since the Christian Era, historical records have been based on a “solar” year of 365.24 days. Therefore, we need to convert those Hebrew days to fit our solar days; and how do we convert the 360-day lunar calendar to a 365.24-day solar calendar?

The factor used for the difference is:.9857.

The number of weeks, multiplied by the number of days-per-week, equals total days. The total number of days, multiplied by the factor .9857, equals the number of Hebrew day/years. By using Daniel’s 70 week prophecy, which will be discussed in the next part of our discussion, the simplified equation looks something like this:

70 weeks x 7 days per week = 490 days x .9857 = 483 days or Hebrew years.

The Apostle John lived during the Christian Era under a Gentile Roman government that used a solar calendar of 365.24 days. His writings are primarily to the Gentile church. Thus, it is correct to use the Gentile solar calendar of 365.24 days to interpret John’s prophecies without making any conversion.

This day for a year principle can be demonstrated from the 70 weeks of Daniel Chapter 9, where both the starting point of a prophecy, and its fulfillment, are events that have already happened— events that we can read about in history.

In 536 BC, the evening of King Belshazzar’s famous feast where Daniel interpreted the handwriting on the wall, Darius the Mede conquered Babylon. By that date, 536 BC, Daniel and his people had been captive in Babylon for 70 years. He knew from a prophecy in the Book of Jeremiah that their time of captivity should be over: “For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.” (Jer. 29:10.)

During the first year of Darius the Mede, while Daniel was praying, God sent the angel Gabriel to comfort him. Because the 70 years of captivity were indeed over, the angel told him of a new and different 70 years, a future seventy weeks of seven days each. Here is what Gabriel told him, as found in Daniel 9:24-26:

Daniel 9:24-26:24. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.25. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.26. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

And to whom is this prophecy addressed and what is it all about? It was addressed to the Jews, and it was about Jerusalem. What does verse 24 tell us will be accomplished in those 70 weeks of time?

1. Finish transgression
2. Make an end of sin
3. Make reconciliation for iniquity
4. Bring in everlasting righteousness
5. Seal up vision and prophecy
6. To anoint the most Holy

It appears that the definite starting time for this prophecy is “From the going forth of the commandment” (v. 25), and the definite fulfillment time is “after threescore and two weeks” (v. 26). The “seven weeks, andthreescore and two weeks” is 69 weeks.

To really understand the time element we need to apply the “day for a year” principle as discussed earlier. By multiplying 70 weeks by 7 days per week we get 490 days. If we then multiply those 490 days by the factor of .9857 we end up with 483 days or Hebrew years. That’s exactly what we get when we add the “seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks”—69 weeks.

Daniel 9:25: “... from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be—seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks[69 weeks]...”69 weeks x 7 days per week = 483 x .9857 = 476 days or Hebrew years.

(Keep these 476 days or Hebrew years in mind for later reference.)

About 100 years after Gabriel spoke to Daniel, Artaxerxes I granted Nehemiah a decree. Although there are other decrees mentioned in the Bible, this is the only decree giving the Jews permission to “restore Jerusalem and rebuild its walls.” It is from this point — the decree or “commandment to restore”—that we should start counting time; that time being about 444 BC.

ABOUT DECREES There are three decrees mentioned in the Bible that cause a lot of misunderstanding among time-liners when it comes to establishing dates. Many confuse Artaxerxes’ two decrees, but the purpose of the decree must match the wording of the prophecy to be valid. Below are listed those decrees and also the relevant information that should be considered when comparing them to prophecy. We shall not go into any more detailed explanation than that which follows; for that is not the purpose of this study:

First Decree: Cyrus’s decree (536 BC) was only for the purpose of worship and to rebuild the temple, but not the city (2 Chron. 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-2 & 5:17-6:11).

Second Decree: Artaxerxes’ first decree (457 BC) only allowed Ezra and others to return to Jerusalem for the purpose of worship (Ezra 7:11-27).

Third Decree: Artaxerxes’ second decree (444 BC) directed that Jerusalem and its walls be rebuilt.

BACK TO OUR DISCUSSION The decree considered at this time is Artaxerxes’ 444 BC decree, for this is the only decree which purpose matches prophetic wording. So taking that year, let’s do a little figuring with the 476 years we arrived at above:

444 BC + 476 years = 32 AD

Why is that year (32 AD) important? It’s the year of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ—right to the year!

What about those six points that were to be fulfilled during those 70 weeks? All but one were fulfilled at the time of Jesus’s death and resurrection.

1. Finish transgression
2. Make an end of sin
3. Make reconciliation for iniquity
4. Bring in everlasting righteousness
5. Seal up vision and prophecy
6. To anoint the most Holy

POINT 5 All of those points should be rather obvious except, perhaps, for points 5 and 6. Concerning point 5, this is where those first 7 weeks of the 69 weeks come in. When we take 7 weeks and multiply them by 7 days per week, we get 49 days or 49 Hebrew years. Timing that by the factor .9857 we have 48.3 solar years. By subtracting 48.3 years from 444 BC we get the year 395.7 BC.

About 396 BC was the time that the Book of Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament, was written. The scripture to the Jews was complete, and no more was written until the New Testament era. So Old Testament vision and prophecy were, indeed, “sealed up,” as point 5 indicates—ending or sealing up the vision and prophecy spoken of by Daniel (Dan. 9:25). One old Rabbi lamented some 196 years later, in about 200 BC, “The Holy spirit has departed from Israel.” And until this very day, the Jews, as a nation, have not been permitted to see any further. The Lord has blinded their eyes so they could not recognize Jesus as their Messiah (See Rom. 11:8; 2 Cor. 3:15.)

AFTER the first seven weeks of the “seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks,” which took us to Malachi and the conclusion of the Old Testament prophecy, we have the “threescore and two weeks.” And what was to take place after those 62 weeks? The “Messiah [shall] be cut off, but not for himself,” as stated in Daniel 9:26. John the Beloved wrote, “And he is the propitiation [appeasement] for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:2.)

POINT 6 Now what about point 6—“To anoint the most Holy”? How is this fulfilled? The following quote from Elis Skolfield’s book, The False Prophet, may have the answer:

“Incredible as it may sound, it appears that the archeologist Ron Wyatt may have found the Ark of the Covenant. According to Wyatt, the Ark was hidden in a cave under Golgotha—Gordon’s Calvary. From the word of the Lord to him, Jeremiah knew that Jerusalem was about to fall, so he appears to have placed the Table of Showbread, the Altar of Incense, and the Ark of the Covenant in that cave and walled them up. The cave was forgotten, and these articles have remained secreted ever since. This explains a previously inexplicable prophecy: ‘and He shall anoint the Most Holy.’ During the crucifixion, Jesus’ side was pierced, and the rocks beneath the cross rent (Mat 27:51). According to Wyatt, the Ark is about 20 feet under where the Lord was crucified. It appears that Jesus’ blood ran through a fissure in the bedrock and fell on the Mercy Seat. If so, then in accordance with Dan. 9:24, Jesus did indeed ‘anoint the Most Holy’ with His own precious blood. Videotapes and various newsletters are available from Wyatt Archeological Research, 713 Lambert Dr. Nashville, TN 37220.” (The False Prophet, p. 35.)

Because of his claimed discovery, Ron Wyatt has been severely ridiculed, which treatment is no different than anyone else experiences who declares something that others don’t want to hear. The reader can do their own research and determine for himself if Wyatt’s story is true or not. The following YouTubes, of Wyatt’s personal testimony, may be of interest to the reader:

We have just seen how the day for a year principle is applied to history by considering Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy—events that have already happened and we can read about in history. Now let’s see how that day for a year concept can be applied to other biblical prophecies not so easily understood.

SIDE NOTE OF INTEREST To get an accurate chronological picture of the Book of Daniel, try reading the book in the following order: Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 10.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Part 5:

1290 Days of Daniel

To the Jewish people, Jerusalem is Ir Ha-Kodesh (the Holy City), the Biblical Zion, the City of David, the site of Solomon’s Temple, and the eternal capital of the Israelite nation. With a little understanding, Daniel’s prophecies are about Jerusalem, its people, the Temple and temple sacrifice.

In the Book of Daniel, Chapters 10 and 12, we find the final vision of Daniel’s prophetic ministry. The year was 533 BC. The prophecy is obviously about the future of Daniel’s people, the Jews who were then in captivity. In verse 1, of Chapter 12, the prophetic reference is to “thy people, which were the Jews. In verse 11 we find the subject of our study, the 1290 days:

Daniel 12:11: “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.”

Here we have a vision that Daniel received and understood about his people, the Jews, and their daily sacrifice. Old Testament prophecy was fulfilled steadily, as the period about which it was written gradually unfolded. This is the traditional continuous-historic context, and one which the early religious reformers well understood. Therefore, there is no reason to believe the Lord was telling Daniel about any abolishment of sacrifices that might take place 2500 years later, at the end time.

The obvious questions should be: Are the 1290 days actual days, or are they years as in the day for a year principle; and what is the “abomination that maketh desolate”? Since sacrifices were offered at the temple in old Jerusalem, then some abomination that would make it desolate would have to be established—a defilement preventing the offering of sacrifices.

The prophecy was given to Daniel in the year 533 BC for it was in the “third year of Cyrus king of Persia” (Dan. 10:1), and we can determine that date from history.

Nebuchadnezzar ascended the throne of Babylon in about 606 BC. Babylonians took the nobles, artisans and priests captive, and they left only the poorest people in the land. There were apparently no purified priests left in the land who could offer sacrifices. Twenty-three years later, 583 BC, is the time supported to be when this took place and sacrifices came to an end.

So with that historic background in place, let’s look at Daniel 12:11 again. “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.”

By applying the day for a year principle to that verse, we can now understand the vision. “A thousand two hundred and ninety days” would be 1290 years.

Daniel knew when the regular evening and morning sacrifices were discontinued, so he looked from that time forward, some 1290 years, and understood that some unbelievable event was going to occur on the temple mount that would make it “desolate.” What would it be? The answer to that question Daniel did not know, but since the 1290 years have now passed, perhaps we can figure it out. So let’s do a little calculation:

1290 Hebrew years x .9857 = 1271.5 Solar years.

1271.5 - 583 BC (when sacrifice ended) = 688.5 AD.

So what happened in 688.5 AD? Well, from 684 to 691 AD, the Moslem Kalifah, Abd el Malik ibn Marwan, built a memorial to Muhammad (often spelled Mohammed) on God’s temple mount—the

Dome of the Rock(pictured left).

(We are using the figure of 688.5 as the date for the Dome of the Rock because of the difference between its general construction dates of 684 and 691, which is not an exact date, but still fits within the prophecy. However, other researchers apply the date of 685 AD as the beginning of construction for the Dome of the Rock. Greatbuildings.com places the date for its construction at 684 AD.)

Another way of figuring it is by taking the year 606 BC, the year Nebuchadnezzar ascended to the throne, and add 684 AD. What do you get?

606 BC + 684 AD = Daniel’s 1290 day/years.

The Dome of the Rock, known in Arabic as Qubbat As-Sakhrah, is not a mosque for public worship but rather a Muslim shrine for pilgrims. Abd al-Malik’s purpose was to erect a beautiful Muslim building that could compete with the majestic churches of Christendom and would be a symbolic statement to both Jews and Christians of the superiority of the new faith of Islam.

One should not confuse the golden-domed Qubbat As-Sakhrah, the Dome of the Rock (pictured as upper right structure), with the Al-Aqsa Mosque(lower right structure with dark gray dome), which is a place of worship and not a shrine, and which is also placed near the Dome of the Rock.

NOTE: Some may argue that temple sacrifices could have been abolished a year or two earlier, or a couple of years later than 583BC. But everyone agrees that sacrifices were not abolished before the destruction of the temple in 586 BC. The Dome of the Rock was under construction on the temple mount for about 7 years, from about 684 to 691 AD. Leaving the widest latitude for scholarly argument, that 7-year window cannot be circumvented.

The Dome of the Rock = the Abomination of Desolation

That is not just coincidence or suppositional theology. The “day for a year” interpretation fits the words of Daniel 12:11 and it fits known history. The construction date of the Dome of the Rock is a plain historic fact that you can prove from any good encyclopedia of world history.

For the first time in scripture we run into the Moslems. Islam, and nobody else, was responsible for the construction of the “abomination that maketh desolate”—the Qubbat As-Sakhrah, the Dome of the Rock.

Just before His death and Resurrection, Jesus gave a prophetic sermon to His disciples as recorded in Matthew 24. In Mark 13 we find the same sermon, but with a little more information. In verse 14, of Mark 13, we read: “But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, Spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not ... then let them that be in Judea flee to the mountains.”

This verse indicates that the abomination of desolation is an “it,” and not a “him,” which helps fit the conclusion that the Dome of the Rock IS that abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel. Before 688 AD, both Christians and Jews could freely worship in Jerusalem and on the temple mount, but the temple mount has now been made desolate for over 1300 years, and the Jews can not offer sacrifices to the Lord on His holy mount while that Dome of the Rock to the false prophet remains.

In the Qur’an (often spelled Koran), the most sacred book of Islam written entirely by Muhammad, this Islamic “prophet” wrote what has become known as the “great lie”—the lie being that it was not Isaac that Abraham attempted to sacrifice upon the alter. Muhammad had removed Isaac’s name and replaced it with that of Ishmael, the father of the Arab people.

In honor of Ishmael, the faithful Muslims built the Dome of the Rock upon the very spot where that altar stood, the very spot where Solomon had built his temple to the Lord, the very spot where the Jewish temple stood that was destroyed in 70 A.D. As a result Jerusalem became the second most holy place for the faithful Muslim. All other people, especially Christians and Jews, became known as infidels, and to give it up to an infidel would cause a revolt like no other.

Solomon’s Temple was built over the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, and on that bedrock the Ark of the Covenant, within the Kodesh Ha-Kodeshim, the Holy of Holies, was kept. The stone floor upon which the Dome of the Rock was constructed is rough and not smooth—not suitable as a threshing-floor. Trying to thresh and recover grain from that floor would have been extremely difficult. (Above Left: Rough stone floor inside Dome of the Rock.) So it is obvious that the Dome of the Rock could hardly be placed where the Holy of Holies was located, particularly when there was a perfectly smooth flat rock, very suitable for threshing grain, just 300 feet away.

The irony of it all is that the Dome of the Rock is not exactly where Solomon’s Temple stood as the Moslems believe. The actual Temple site was north of the Dome of the Rock. Today there is a little gazebo aptly named the “Dome of the Tablets,” or “Dome of the Spirits” (pictured above right), that covers the smooth flat threshing floor where the Holy of Holies of the old Temple was formerly located. And the old Eastern Gate lines up perfectly with the “Dome of the Tablets,” as indicated it was supposed to line up with the Holy of Holies (pictured left).

In John’s Revelation we read: “But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles:...” (Rev. 11:2.) This court, “which is without the temple,” is known as the “Court of the Gentiles,” of Solomon’s Temple; it being where common people and even unwashed slaves were allowed. This is exactly where the Dome of the Rock is located. The place upon which the Mosque is built is named As Sakhr, the rock from which Muhammad supposedly ascended into heaven. How appropriate it is that they built the Mosque, dedicated to Muhammad, on the wrong rock, in the Court of the Gentiles. How truly Ironic!

If the Moslems had not built on the wrong rock, it would be impossible for this next quote to be fulfilled. Look carefully at the language and see how perfectly it fits the situation on the temple mount today.

Revelation 11:2: “But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.”

The Dome of the Rock is a Gentile structure in the court that was left out. This verse says that the city of Jerusalem would be under Gentile control for 42 months. Could those 42 months be months of days that should be considered as years?

To find out we will need a beginning date and an ending date. But first, let’s check out the 42 months of days. Remember, the Hebrew calendar has 30 days per month, but the solar calendar of the Christian Era has 30.44 days per month. So let’s put our calculator to work again:

42 months x 30.44 days = 1278.5 days, OR, 1278.5 years using the day for a year principle.

Now looking for a starting date, let’s take the date of the Dome of the Rock — 688.5 AD.

1278.5 + 688.5 we get a figure of . . . 1967

1967— On the 6th day of June, 1967, at the end of what has been called the Six-day War, General Moshe Dayan and a tough, battle-hardened contingent of Israeli commandos stood before a wall of ancient stones—tears streamed down their faces. They were at the Wailing Wall in East Jerusalem, that Holy Place from which they had been exiled so many centuries before. They were crying thanks unto God for restoring their ancient city to them. There they solemnly swore: “Never again shall we be driven from this place.” For the first time, in 2573 years, the Jews were again in control of their beloved Jerusalem—the Holy City. Could that touching moment be the historic end of the prophecy which said, “and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months”?

There we have it! In the 1290 days prophecy of Daniel 12, the Lord took us from 583 BC and the suspending of the daily sacrifice to the “abomination that makes desolate,” the Dome of the Rock in 688 AD; and from there, when the Gentiles would tread the Holy City under foot for 42 months, until Jerusalem was restored to the Jews in 1967. Not only does this prophecy work out by the numbers, but look how it fits every word of scripture:

1) Sacrifice abolished.
2) Abomination of desolation set up.
3) Leaving out the court for the Gentiles.
4) The Holy city tread under foot for 42 months.

Is all of this just coincidence? A statistical analysis would prove it about impossible without God’s hand in it.

Shortly before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which began the Christian Era at 32-33 AD, He gave His disciples what has become known as the “Olivet Discourse,” which is recorded in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. Although the same sermon, each account adds a little more information for our understanding.

1) Matt. 24:31 states that the elect are gathered at the sound of a “great trumpet.”2) Mark 13:14 declares that the “abomination of desolation” is an “it,” and not a “him.”
3) Luke 21:24 defines the “time of the Gentiles.”

Focusing on Luke for a moment, let’s read verses 21-24:

21. Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.22. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.23. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people.24. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:21-24.)

Jesus prophesied that Jerusalem would be trodden down by the Gentiles. But for how long? Until the times of the Gentiles are “fulfilled.”

Now we have two more questions to ask: 1) what is this “time of the Gentiles” all about, and 2) what is meant by the times of the Gentiles being fulfilled?

When Jesus gave His prophecy (32 or 33 AD), Jerusalem had already been under the control of various Gentile governments for about 638 years. The word “shall” is a word designating future events, so the words used by Jesus in this prophecy, “shall fall” and “shall be,” indicate future events. Over those many years of Gentile domination, the Jews revolted against their foreign rulers time-and-time again. So in 70 AD, the Roman general, Titus, destroyed Jerusalem, burned the 2nd temple to the ground, and dispersed the Jews among the nations.

After the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 AD, and the dispersal of the Jews, they never again had a country of their own until 1948, and never had control of their beloved city, Jerusalem, until 1967. Throughout the whole Christian Era, the Gentiles have always ruled Jerusalem as prophesied by the Savior: “and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until...”

Until When? “until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.”

As of the 6th day of June, 1967, at the end of the Six-day War, no one knew exactly what was meant by the term, “time of the Gentiles.” But with hindsight, we now know that the Gentiles’ domination of Jerusalem was that period of time, the “time of the Gentiles.”

But what comes after the “time of the Gentiles”? For that answer, let’s consider Daniel 12 verses 4 and 9:

4. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.9. And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

Until 1967 the vision of Daniel was “shut up” and sealed, meaning that nobody would be able to understand it. But after that time it is no longer shut up or sealed. Prophetic understanding is now open as indicated by the words in verse four: “knowledge shall be increased.” What does this mean? It means that knowledge and understanding of many other scriptural prophecies are open, besides those of Daniel.

Here is an important point: Most end-time views held by people in all churches, today, were theorized from studies made in Daniel many years before 1967. But if God sealed Daniel until the “time of the end,” and the time of the end didn’t begin until 1967, perhaps those end-time views have to either be wrong, or incomplete at best.

In Part 1 of our study the question was asked, When is the “time of the end”? The answer to that question is:

During the time after 1967 when Daniel’s prophecies were no longer sealed.

The implication of this is that many in this generation will be living witnesses of the total end time events and the coming of our Messiah in Glory. If previous views are incorrect, as they might be, then we could be basing the last few decisions we will ever make on events that are never going to take place.

Daniel was a Jew, and he was concerned and prayed about his people, their religion, and his and their homeland. God answered his prayers, so the visions he received were about his people in the future, and no other.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Part 8:
The 1260 Days

Now that we know where we are in earth’s time and God’s total scheme of things, let’s delve into another prophecy, that of John’s Revelation 12:1-5:

1 AND there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

These five verses can tempt quite a few more questions to be asked, but we will venture only two at this time: 1) Who is the woman clothed with the sun, and 2) who is the man child?

When we read the description of the man child, we find that there is only one Individual in all eternity who fits the answer. “And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Rev. 19:15-16.) The answer should be obvious—Jesus Christ.

That makes the woman Israel (including both Kingdoms of Judah and Israel) and the 12 stars the 12 tribes. The dragon would then be Satan, who tried to defeat the Lord during His mortal ministry, and the fallen stars would be the fallen angels.

Continuing on with verse 6 of Revelation 12 we read: “And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore day.” That is 1260 days, or could it be Hebrew years?

Taking a starting date, say at the Dome of the Rook — 688 AD — let’s do a little calculating:

688 + 1260 years = 1948

As of 1948, the Jews are no longer dispersed throughout the nations. On May 15th of that year, Israeli Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, stood and declared the nation of Israel to be a sovereign state. That is a historic fact that nobody can dispute.

And as of 1948, the woman of Revelation 12, Israel, is no longer in the wilderness. Jeremiah spoke of the “time of Jacob’s trouble,” when Satan’s yoke upon the Jewish neck would be broken: “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves [make slaves] of him” (Jer. 30:7-8; brackets added.)

Before 688 AD both Christians and Jews could freely worship in Jerusalem and on the temple mount. They were not prophetically in the “wilderness” of the nations until the Moslems established the “abomination of desolation”; it then became dangerous for them to worship there any more.

What about the 1335 days of Daniel 12:12? “Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.” That’s 1335 days or Hebrew years, so let’s do a little factoring:

1335 x .9857 = 1316 (rounded off); and 1948 - 1316 = 632 AD.

Now what’s so special about the year 632 AD? That is when Muhammad (571-632AD) died in 632 AD. Could that be a significant answer for Daniel’s 1335 days? Perhaps! Let’s check a couple of things:

The factored number of 1335 is 1316.
1316 + 632 = 1948 (which is simply checking the correctness of the figure above.)

Now let’s try using the whole number of 1335 and NOT its factor:
1335 + 632 = 1967; That’s very interesting.

But what is more interesting is Daniel’s prophecy of the last trumpet, or the resurrection.

Daniel 12:1-3: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”

This scripture points out that at the most troublesome time the earth will ever know, the dead in Christ shall awake, or be resurrected. Going down to verses 10-13 we are told precisely what events and time intervals to expect leading to the resurrection:

Daniel 12:10-13: “Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.”

As we considered earlier in this study, the prophecy of Daniel is “closed up and sealed till the time of the end” (v. 9), and we are told that, at that time, the wicked will not understand what is going on, for “none of the wicked shall understand,” but the righteous will, for “the wise shall understand” (v. 10). And during this resurrection, many will be tried, but they “shall be purified, and made white.”

But the real purpose of these verses are found in verses 12 and 13. Here Daniel is told that “blessed” is the one who reaches the end of the 1335 days. Then he is told that he would “rest,” (being a reference to his death), until the end of these days when he is to “stand in thy lot at the end of days,” as it says, meaning he will arise during the resurrection. But when is that glorious event? As we discussed above, the 1290 years found in verse 11, took us to the Dome of the Rock. So let’s consider that point in dealing with the 1335 days.

The defiling of the temple mount began in 684 AD when construction started on the Dome of the Rock. From that time forward, the site has been off limits for any Jewish or Christian worshipers. No one except moon-god worshipers (Moslems) are allowed to enter the site of the Dome of the Rock.

According to what we have studied thus far, there were to be 1290 days (or years) from the removal of temple sacrifice until the “abomination” is set up, as indicated by our study in Part 4. Now we need to address the 1335 days, because “Blessed is he that waiteth” until then. So the question is: Do the 1335 years run parallel with the 1290 years or do they begin after the 1290 years? The answer should be easy by doing a little figuring as we did in Part 4.

1335 x .9857 = 1315.9 - 583 BC = 732.9

Did the resurrection of Daniel occur in the year 732.9? NO—It did not! Nothing of significance to our study happened that year. The Messiah didn’t return nor did the resurrection take place. Therefore, the 1335 years must begin in 684 AD, which is the date the Dome of the Rock was begun, or 688.5 AD, which was the date used in Part 4 for our calculation there. So let’s calculate again by using both the 684 AD and the 688.5 AD dates.

1335 + 684 AD = 2019 ADOR1335 = 688.5 AD = 2023.5 AD

As we started out our discussion, we indicated that not all calendars are correct and all dates not accurate. But perhaps we have discovered, within four years, when the general resurrection and the great day of the Lord is with the blowing of the last trumpet.

1 Corinthians 15:51-52: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”

Twice in Daniel, and once in Revelation, there is the expression “time, times, and half a time,” so how long is a time? Turning to the relevant verses we read:

Daniel 7:25: “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”

Daniel 12:7: “And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”

Revelation 12:14: “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”

Here we have that woman again we read about in verses 1-6 of Chapter 12 who “fled into the wilderness” where she was fed for “a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” Verse 6 said she shall be fed and verse 14 said she is to be “nourished.” Verse 6 also used the term, “a thousand two hundred and threescore days,” while verse 14 says “time, and times, and half a time.”

There seems to be an obvious question here: Is the “thousand two hundred and threescore days,” which we know to be 1260 years, the same as the “time, and times, and half a time”? Let see if we can figure it out.

We have “time, and times, and half a time.” How many times do we have here? Hebrew is full of idiomatic language. For example, the Hebrew idiom “cut off” means “to kill,” and so on. So is “time, and times, and half a time” an idiom? Let’s read a few biblical verses:

What we have here is the word “once” (one time), and the word “twice” (one more time), indicating only TWO times. The word “twice” does not mean two more time, making three times. So we do not have the equation of 1 + 2 = 3, but WE DO HAVE the equation of 1 + 1 = 2.

In the same way, a singular “time” followed by a plural “times” might be only two. Only two! The words are different, but the idiomatic form is the same. And when we add a half a time we have two and a half.

To take this study a little further, the translation of the Hebrew idiom “time, and times, and half a time,” in the Jewish Bible (both Messianic and non-Messianic), is somewhat different than most Christians may have been taught. Below is the same verse from a version of the Tanach, the Hebrew Old Testament:

Daniel 12:7: “And I heard the man clad in linen, who was above the waters of the river, and he raised his right hand and his left hand to the heavens, and he swore by the Life of the world, that in the time of two times and a half, and when they have ended shattering the strength of the holy people, all these will end.”

We see from the Tanach that we have 2 times plus ½.

So with time (1), and times (1), and half a time (½) we actually have 1 + 1 + ½ = 2 ½.

This being true, then why are people interpreting “time, and times, and half a time” as 3 ½ years? Probably because it fits the Seven-Year tribulation concept. However, many Hebrew scholars claim that their grammar does not support 3 ½ times as the correct translation for that idiom.

Let’s now go back to a scripture we used earlier, 2 Peter 3:8 where it is written: “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”

If time is a thousand years, and we have 2 ½ of them, then “time, and times, and half a time” could be 2500 years. Now let’s see if there is an exact 2500 year historic fulfillment of this biblical use of “time, and times, and half a time.”

“In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon [552 BC] Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed:...” Dan. 7:1.) In this dream vision Daniel saw four great beasts coming up out of the sea. “And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another” (v. 3). We know that “sea” is a metaphore for people, for in Revelation 17:15 we read: “...The waters which thou sawest ... are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.”

In Daniel’s vision was a description of the four beasts, or great empires, that were to rule in the Holy Land during the time of the Gentiles. At the end of that prophecy the Lord tells Daniel about the times.

Daniel 7:25: “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”

Besides the mentioning of “time and times and the dividing of time,” verse 25 also mentions a couple of other things: “speak great words against the most High,” and “wear out the saints of the most High.” Those who speak great things against the most High are Satan and those who follow him; and who were the saints during Daniel’s time? They were the Jews, of course. So for 2500 years, the Jewish saints would be persecuted and worn out by the satanically directed Gentiles who were in power of Jerusalem during those “time and times and the dividing of time.” So let’s put it all together:

The first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon was: 552 BC + 2500 Years = 1948 AD.

Check it out. Just add 1948 + 552 = 2500.

At the end of Daniel’s prophetic ministry, God gave him another vision containing times. This prophecy also includes the 1290 days which led us to understand that the Dome of the Rock is the “abomination that makes desolate.” This vision is dated from the third year of Cyrus the Persian, which was 533 BC.

Daniel 10:1: “In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed unto Daniel, ...”

By the time of Cyrus, Daniel was now a very old man. He knew that an abomination of desolation was going to stand on the temple mount in less than 1300 years. The Lord told him when the Jews would once again inhabit Jerusalem, right to the year, but that no one would know for sure when that time would be—at least not until it happened. We’ve considered Daniel 12:7 above, but let’s turn to that verse once again:

Daniel 12:7: “And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”

As discussed earlier, three years before Daniel’s vision as recorded in Chapter 12, Cyrus had given a decree that would permit the Jews to return to their homeland of Jerusalem. In the year 536 BC, 50,000 Jewish exiles, empowered by Cyrus’ decree, returned to Jerusalem. But when was the vision given? It was given in 533 BC, the third year of Cyrus. So this “time, times, and half a time”—or “time of two times and a half”—should begin in the third year of Cyrus—533 BC. With that year, here is what we get:

533 BC + 2500 years = 1967 AD.

The Lord even worded the last phrase of that prophecy in such a way that it would be difficult to miss his intent: “... and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.” As of 1967 AD, His holy people, the Jews, were no longer scattered among the Gentiles. They have their nation again, and their power is shattered no longer.

There is a third time in Daniel that proves a prophetic “time” to be a thousand years. The four beasts of Daniel 7 are understood to be the great Gentile empires that would rule in the Holy Land during the time of the Gentiles. The first three beasts were Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece. The fourth beast, Rome, fell in 476 AD. The Moslems came on the scene soon after, but the Moslems were not granted world dominion like the empires that came before them; however, the Lord did permit the Islamic states to rule in the Holy Land for a “season and a time.”

To understand this part of the prophecy, we must understand that Babylon was represented by the “lion,” Medo-Persia by the “bear,” Greece by the “leopard” with four heads, and Rome by a “diverse” beast with “ten horns” and “great iron teeth.” (Dan. 7:1-8, 11-12.)

In Revelation 13 we find a beast which is a composite of Daniel’s first three beasts: the lion, bear, and leopard; which is Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece. Today this same geographical region is occupied by Iraq, Iran, and Syria/Lebanon. These are the modern-day counterparts of the earlier lion, bear, leopard beast kingdoms of Daniel, and which are also all Gentile Moslem nations.

One might ask, Why is the fourth beast, the Rome Empire, not mentioned along with the first three beasts? The answer to that question is that, today, Rome is Christian and not Moslem, and it does not occupy the same geographic region, nor does it have anything to do with the “abomination of desolation.”

While some of these Islamic countries (Iraq, Iran, Syria, etc.) have national autonomy, and the different Islamic sects might be at war with one another, they are all perfectly united behind their false prophet, Muhammad, and united in the spirit of antichrist. And these modern-day Islamic Gentile nations perfectly compliment biblical prophecy. Let’s now turn to Daniel 7:11-12. In doing so, notice the highlighted brackets that contain interpretive comments.

Daniel 7:11-12: “... I beheld even till the [4th] beast [Rome] was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts [the Islamic nations of the Middle East], they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives [in the Holy Land] were prolonged for a season and time.”

Now if time is 1000 years and there are four seasons per year, then a season would be about 1/4 of a time, or a thousand years. One fourth of 1000 years is 250 years. So we have:

1000 + 250 = 1250

The term “about 1/4" is used because actual seasons fluctuate depending upon the lunar cycle and weather. Realizing that a season is not an exact number and could shift a week or so either way, and the difference over hundreds of years could add up significantly, this “season and time” could fit history quite easily. Considering shifts in the seasons for 1250 years, the years considered could actually be 1260 years. If that is the case then what we have is:

This last example being the case, then we have seen three examples, from Daniel alone, of time fitting history, when time is understood to be a thousand years. Consequently, it is unrealistic to hold that prophetic times mean anything else.

What’s the implication of all this? Well, what we learned so far is that these figures, such as 1260 days, 1290 days, 42 months, time, times and a half, etc, have little to do with either the first or the last half of the Great seven-year tribulation period. They are about the Gentile Moslem nations, the Dome of the Rock, and the restoration of the Jews back to their homeland of Jerusalem. The support of these prophetic explanations span thousands of years from historic events that took place in antiquity to events that have taken place in our own lifetimes. When left up to man, that is a statistical impossibility; but not with God. So we no longer have just a theory, we have sound biblical and historically evidence supporting the theses presented.

Revelation 13:1: “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.”

The sea is people, tongues and nations as stated in Revelation 17:15. The seven heads are the seven empires: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and Islam. After Rome fell in the year A.D. 476, it later divided into10 nations—the 10 horns.

Revelation 13:2: “And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.”

Once we understand John’s beast, which is like a leopard-bear-lion, we understand it to be a composite of Daniel’s three beasts: the leopard as being Greece, the bear as Medo-Persia, and the lion as Babylon. These three were the first three of the four beasts of Daniel that conquered and controlled the Middle East and oppressed God’s people in ancient times. Today, John’s leopard-bear-lion beast is a combination of the same three empires—all together making up the Islamic Empire.

Some might claim that the Islamic countries in the Middle East do not constitute a real kingly empire because they are not united under one central government. But the God of the Bible is far more concerned with the spiritual realities in the Holy Land than He is with how many earthly governments it may have. The reality is this: All Middle Eastern Arabic nations are united under one religion, Islam, and all Moslems have one central goal: world conquest for their religion.

Revelation 13:3: “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.”

The deadly wound was inflicted on the beast (Islamic Empire) on October 10, 732, during the Battle of Tours (more properly Poitiers), France, by the hand of Charles “Martel,” nicknamed “The Hammer.” This battle not only marked the peak of the Islamic Empire, but the demise of its First Jihad (Holy War).

Jihad is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word means “struggle,” or to “strive in the way of Allah.” Muslims use the word in a religious context to refer to three types of struggles: an internal struggle to maintain faith, the struggle to improve the Muslim society, or the struggle in a holy war. The jihad that inflicted the wound was in the latter sense—“a holy war.”

Before the Battle of Tours, the Arab forces were invincible. According to one unidentified Arab, “That army went through all places like a desolating storm.” The Islamic forces sacked and captured the city of Bordeaux, and then defeated the army of Duke Odo of Aquitaine at the Battle of the River Garonne; of which battle one western chroniclers stated, “God alone knows the number of the slain.” Duke Odo fled to Charles Martel, seeking help. (Right: artist impression of the Battle of Tours.)

The location of the Battle of Tours was close to the border between the Frankish realm and that of Aquitaine. The battle pitted Frankish and Burgundian (French) forces, under Charles Martel (The “Hammer”), against an army of the Umayyad Caliphate, led by Emir Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi.

Martel gathered his forces directly in the path of the oncoming Moslem army and prepared to defend themselves by using a phalanx style of combat. The invading Moslems rushed forward, relying on the slashing tactics and overwhelming number of horsemen that had brought them victories in the past. However, the French Army, composed of foot soldiers armed only with swords, shields, axes, javelins, and daggers, was well trained. Despite the effectiveness of the Moslem army in previous battles, the terrain caused them a disadvantage. Their strength lied within their cavalry, armed with large swords and lances, which along with their baggage mules, limited their mobility. The French army displayed great determination in withstanding the ferocious attack of the Moslems. It was one of the rare times in the Middle Ages when infantry held its ground against a mounted attack.

The French were victorious, and the literal head of the advancing army, Abdul Rahman, was killed. Without his leadership and guidance, the other Islamic commanders were unable to even agree on a new commander to lead them back into battle the following morning. The effect of the death of Abdul Rahman on both Islamic and world history was profound. (Left : Map of the Battle of Tours.)

Christian historians praised Charles Martel as the champion of Christianity, characterizing the battle as the decisive turning point in the struggle against Islam, a struggle which preserved Christianity as the religion of Europe. According to modern military historian Victor Davis Hanson, “most of the 18th and 19th century historians saw the Battle of Tours as a landmark battle that marked the high tide of the Muslim advance into Europe.” Leopold von Ranke felt that “Poitiers [Tours] was the turning point of one of the most important epochs in the history of the world.”

At this point I would like to present a couple of excerpts from two chronicles that gives a fairly good feel for what took place at Tours:

The Chronicle of Isidore of Beja’s:“Then Abderrahman, [the Muslim emir] seeing the land filled with the multitude of his army, crossed the Pyrenees, and traversed the defiles [in the mountains] and the plains, so that he penetrated ravaging and slaying clear into the lands of the Franks. He gave battle to Duke Eudes (of Aquitaine) beyond the Garonne and the Dordogne, and put him to flight—so utterly [was he beaten] that God alone knew the number of the slain and wounded. Whereupon Abderrahman set in pursuit of Eudes; he destroyed palaces, burned churches, and imagined he could pillage the basilica of St. Martin of Tours. It is then that he found himself face to face with the lord of Austrasia, Charles, a mighty warrior from his youth, and trained in all the occasions of arms.

“For almost seven days the two armies watched one another, waiting anxiously the moment for joining the struggle. Finally they made ready for combat. And in the shock of the battle the men of the North seemed like North a sea that cannot be moved. Firmly they stood, one close to another, forming as it were a bulwark of ice; and with great blows of their swords they hewed down the Arabs. Drawn up in a band around their chief, the people of the Austrasians carried all before them. Their tireless hands drove their swords down to the breasts [of the foe].

“At last night sundered the combatants. The Franks with misgivings lowered their blades, and beholding the numberless tents of the Arabs, prepared themselves for another battle the next day. Very early, when they issued from their retreat, the men of Europe saw the Arab tents ranged still in order, in the same place where they had set up their camp. Unaware that they were utterly empty, and fearful lest within the phalanxes of the Saracens were drawn up for combat, they sent out spies to ascertain the facts. These spies discovered that all the squadrons of the “Ishmaelites” had vanished. In fact, during the night they had fled with the greatest silence, seeking with all speed their home land. The Europeans, uncertain and fearful, lest they were merely hidden in order to come back [to fall upon them] by ambushments, sent scouting parties everywhere, but to their great amazement found nothing. Then without troubling to pursue the fugitives, they contented themselves with sharing the spoils and returned right gladly to their own country.

Chronicle of St. Denis:“The Muslims planned to go to Tours to destroy the Church of St. Martin, the city, and the whole country. Then came against them the glorious Prince Charles, at the head of his whole force. He drew up his host, and he fought as fiercely as the hungry wolf falls upon the stag. By the grace of Our Lord, he wrought a great slaughter upon the enemies of Christian faith, so that—as history bears witness—he slew in that battle 300,000 men, likewise their king by name Abderrahman. Then was he [Charles] first called “Martel,” for as a hammer of iron, of steel, and of every other metal, even so he dashed: and smote in the battle all his enemies. And what was the greatest marvel of all, he only lost in that battle 1500 men. The tents and harness [of the enemy] were taken; and whatever else they possessed became a prey to him and his followers. Eudes, Duke of Aquitaine, being now reconciled with Prince Charles Martel, later slew as many of the Saracens as he could find who had escaped from the battle.” (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/732tours.html)(END OF THE TWO CHRONICLES.)

Both western and eastern historians agree that had Abdul Rahman prevailed at Tours, he would probably have conquered all of Europe; and all history would have been far different. Charles Martel and his Frankish Army were all that stood between Islam and the Western Christian world, but they prevailed gloriously. The wound was inflicted upon the beast, and there were no further Muslim invasions of Christian Europe. Charles’s victory has often been regarded as decisive for world history, since it preserved western Europe from Muslim conquest.

Many believe the Battle of Tours to be the most important battle of the Christian era, and the reason the whole world isn’t speaking Arabic and bowing toward Mecca today. All the world wondered after the beast, that nearly conquered the whole known world, before being stopped by Martel. Charles Martel was fighting against the astronomical odds of an Islamic cavalry of hundreds of thousands, but, notably, the Frankish troops won the battle without cavalry. Ninth-century historians interpreted the outcome of the battle as “divine judgment” in Martel’s favor, and gave Charles the nickname, “The Hammer.” The Battle of Tours was probably the most important battle in all of Europe’s past, but except for a handful of Historians, virtually no one never heard of it.

Revelation 13:4: “And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?”

We learned in Revelation 13:2 that it is the dragon (Satan) that gives his power, and his seat, and great authority to the beastly Islamic Empire. There are over 1.5 billion Muslims that worship this beast today. Through an ethnic view of John’s whole world, who indeed was able to make war with the beast that conquered nearly the whole known world.

Revelation 13:5-6: “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.”

The mouth that was given to the beast was Muhammad and the Qur’an. The Islamic beast blasphemes God by saying that God has no Son, that there is no infinite atonement, man can atone for his own deeds by dying for the cause of Allah, and by dying such a death the individual can intercede for the living. Islam also renamed the “I AM” of the Bible, “Allah,” blaspheming His name again. They blasphemed His tabernacle by building the Dome of the Rock on the Holy Mount, God’s footstool, where Solomon’s Temple once stood and the Holy of Holies was once kept. Also, they and their god, Allah, curses Christians and Jews, blaspheming them that serve the Lord. It appears that the reverse of what Christians and Jews believe is what Mosloms believe; the antichrist in the Bible is the god of Islam, and the antichrist of Islam is the Christ of the Bible.

Revelation 13:7: “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”

For 152 years of the Islamic First Jihad, the Muslims slaughtered Jews and Christians, thus overcoming the saints, and nearly succeeding in claiming the whole known world for Allah.

Revelation 13:8: “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”

Below: a map of the First Jihad through an ethnographic view, or looking at it through John’s eyes.
Below: a color map of the Second Islamic Jihad, and the percentages of Moslems in each area as of today.
Revelation 13:9: “If any man have an ear, let him hear.”

Revelation 13:10: “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”

They led the saints into captivity, and then they were taken captive by the two-horned beast. They battled with the weaponry described—the sword. The First Jihad required 152 years of patience and faith for the saints to endure, and Islam continues to oppress God’s people unto this day.

Revelation 13:11: “And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.”

Kingdom, or “beasts,” rise up out of the earth. But this beast is like a lamb, or better translated lambkin, meaning it will appear to be Christian, or doing the Lord’s work. But this beast spake as a dragon, so we know that, in fact, his works are more the works of Satan than Christ. When we look to the history of the area we find the two horns that fit this beast is the Western Christian world which initiated the infamous Crusades; the wars of raping, pillaging, and plundering in the name of the Christ. Indeed the spoils of pillage were a big incentive for many, and some were told that if they went to fight they would be given blanket absolution from sin for the rest of their lives, so how would men be expected to behave?

Revelation 13:12: “And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.”

Before him in this verse means “in the presence of” or in front of. So the two horned beast was exercising control as the first beast—the Islamic First Jihad—but in the presence of the Islamic beast; not instead of. Two horns caused those on earth to worship the first beast by healing the deadly wound caused at the Battle of Tours. Through Western wealth-transfer, by oil purchase and arms shipment, the Second Jihad is being financed in the image of the First Jihad. The Israel National News (July 11, 2007) said, “IDF MI also is of the opinion that sanctions against Iran have not weakened the regime, because huge oil reserves still provide all the money necessary to neutralize any pressure created by the international community.” The Western Christian world is financing their own demise by tolerating and encouraging Islam, which is the world’s fastest growing religion—to the shame of today’s Christianity.

Revelation 13:13-14: “And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by [the means of] those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.”

Through an ethnographic interpretation of scripture, the earlier manifestation of this might be British artillery or, prior to that, perhaps the catapulted fireballs during the Crusades; and more recently we have witnessed the tremendous spectacle of desert storm and the wonder of “smart” bombs “in the sight of men.”

The world was deceived into believing that the Western powers, through these wonders, could continue to have influence over this beast by yielding the power they exercised over to the Islamic beast. Indeed, even empowering the beast with Western wealth-transfer to finance the Second Jihad to conquer with 2 million slain in Sudan alone, and 55 countries yielding to Islam worldwide—so far.

Today the Saudi’s (the most radical Wahabi sect) spend over 10 billion per year setting up Islamic centers and mosques in the U.S. alone. Regarding peace in the Middle East, has the Lord allowed those people to live peacefully together and prosper, whose collective primary religious tenant is the “spirit of antichrist”? Peace doesn’t exactly describe the historical reality of this part of the world. And today we see the Shiite murder and bloodshed, and the relatively backwards 3rd world conditions the people suffer under, in spite of the trillions of dollars that the world has transferred to the area through oil purchase and weapons sales.

The Second Jihad of today is the image of the First Jihad, that was mortally wounded in the Battle of Tours, and “did live” indeed.

Revelation 13:15: “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”

And two horns had the power to give life unto the Second Jihad by Western wealth transfer through oil purchase.

If a Saudi doesn’t show up for morning prayers they send the police to his house. Regarding those killed, Saudi Arabia is the beheading capital of the world. The penalty for “apostasy” or turning away from Islam, is death by beheading, as we nearly witnessed with world-wide attention in Afghanistan. In order to avert the spectacle of beheading an Afghani, just because he became a Christian, and the global outrage it would have inspired, the Afghan government had to pretend he was mentally incompetent.

Revelation 13:16: “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:”

This mark of the beast is a spiritual mark. Our heads and thoughts drive the works of our hands to do Satan’s work.

John wrote in Revelation 9:4 about the locusts that came upon the earth, that they were not to hurt anything but those who had not the “seal of God in their foreheads.” This seal was not a physical mark, but a spiritual one; the same with the mark of the beast, which will be discussed in the next part of this study. If this mark of the beast were to be physical then how is the “seal of God in their foreheads” to be physically manifest? After all, does God really need the aid of a mark in order to sort us all out? I don’t think so!

If it was to be a microchip, a Social Security Number, or something like that, what would happen if you were under general anesthesia and the doctor implanted you when you were unconscious? Would you then go to hell? If so, then God would not be a just God; but He is just. And to justify God in condemning those who take the mark, those people will have to make a conscious choice as to whom they will serve — either the Lord Jesus Christ, or some other god. It is as simple as that.

Revelation 13:17: “And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”

This is the condition of the Middle East today, the beheading capital of the world. John’s whole world is where life is becoming ever more impossible for that tiny remnant that do not carry the mark.

Revelation 13:18: “Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.”

There are some Muslims who testify that the Allah is the 666. And being the number of “a man”: “GOD made His Messenger a witness with the letter Qaf and the number 666.” If that is true, then the Lord could return this day and find that the entire geographic world in which John lived already has the mark of the beast, save a very few only.

At the present time, the Islamic religion is the fastest growing religion on the planet. And within the United States of America it is making great strides, with many Christians tolerating this Satanic religion. Not only that, we have a man in the White House who is a Moslem, who denounces Christ and ridicules the Holy Bible, and claims this country, founded by Almighty God, is no longer a Christian nation. But if the reader was ever worried about having to take the mark of the beast, have no fear—unless you refuse to become a Moslem.